Bakery workers fight for living wages

In negotiations for a year, western Washington workers at Albertsons/Safeway bakeries still don’t have a contract

SEATTLE, WA (July 10, 2026) — Bakery workers at Albertsons and Safeway stores on the west side of Washington state are in ongoing bargaining for a contract with living wage increases, reports their union Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers (BCTGM) Local 9. Contract negotiations began summer of 2025, with members voting down a company offer that failed to meet wage demands in January of 2026.

Since then, the union bargaining team and company have sat down at the table more than a dozen times. But workers have still not received a new offer that meets the financial needs required to secure a positive vote, per BCTGM. The last bargaining session was in mid-June.

Recent reporting in the Northwest Labor Press notes that in Oregon, Safeway and parent company Albertsons top the list of companies whose employees are paid so little that they are eligible for food stamps (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits).

Photo: BCTGM Local 9

Bakery workers are asking for community support as they continue to push for a new collective bargaining agreement that includes full retroactive pay back to the expiration of the previous contract in 2025 as well as sustainable wage increases. They’ve launched a solidarity petition urging Albertsons and Safeway to negotiate a fair contract.

The petition reads:

I respectfully urge Albertsons to provide bakery department employees with living-wage increases. Bakery employees make important daily contributions to store operations and should be treated with fairness, consistency, and equal consideration. We ask that management negotiate in good faith and resolve this disparity with the Union. Providing bakery employees with living wage increases similar to what other coworkers received. That action would reflect equitable treatment and demonstrate respect for their work and contributions. If this issue remains unresolved, our household will consider shopping at stores where employee Union contracts have been settled fairly.

TAKE A STAND: Sign workers’ petition urging Albertsons to settle a fair contract with living-wage increases.